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In our previous blog, you read about the impact of COVID-19 on your sleep . This can affect your mental health, and a common consequence is anxiety, which is often accompanied by anxiety. Therefore, sleep anxiety can be a consequence of these anxiety symptoms.
Sleep anxiety is a fear or worry about going to sleep. You might be afraid of not falling asleep or not being able to stay asleep. Some people also have a pronounced phobia, or fear, of sleep called somniphobia. They might think that something bad will happen to them while they sleep, or that they’re not allowed to sleep because they need to stay alert and vigilant.
Sleep and psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety, often go hand in hand. If you have an anxiety disorder, you may find it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep. And if you have a sleep disorder, you may feel anxious or fearful before bed, worried that you won’t get the rest you need. One condition usually makes the other worse, so it can feel like a never-ending cycle.
Sleep anxiety can occur in adults, teenagers, and children. You’re more likely to develop nighttime sleep anxiety if you have a sleep disorder, such as:
People with the following mental health conditions may also develop night terrors:
Anxiety is the most common mental health disorder in the US, affecting approximately 40 million people.
Research suggests that most people with mental disorders such as anxiety also have some form of sleep disturbance.
Somniphobia negatively impacts your sleep and can ultimately lead to serious health problems. Before we delve into the impact on your sleep, let’s first look at the possible causes.
Fear is a natural part of being human. We’re meant to feel afraid or worried in dangerous situations.
Stress and anxiety trigger our bodies to release hormones that help us react quickly to escape harm. But if you’re chronically anxious, you might feel stressed or worried all the time. You might feel anxious in everyday situations, like driving to work or even falling asleep.
Chronically high levels of these hormones, especially before bed, can make it difficult for your body to relax. You may have trouble falling asleep. If you do fall asleep, you may wake up during the night with stressful or worrying thoughts and be unable to return to sleep.
The combination of anxiety and insomnia can also be caused by a condition where there is not enough thyroid hormone in your bloodstream and your metabolism slows down (hypothyroidism).
Research suggests that anxiety can affect rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. This is the stage of sleep in which you tend to have vivid dreams. When you’re anxious, these dreams can be disturbing or develop into nightmares that ultimately wake you up.
Just as anxiety can affect sleep, sleep can affect anxiety. Sleep anxiety is a common symptom of insomnia, where the individual begins to worry about poor sleep during the day and evening, potentially contributing to another night of poor sleep.
When you can’t sleep due to anxiety, you may experience behavioral changes, including:
Some people also experience night terrors. A panic attack is a sudden, intense burst of extreme fear. Night terrors only occur at night and often wake you from your sleep.
Many people with an anxiety disorder have trouble sleeping. That’s a problem. Lack of sleep affects mood and contributes to irritability and sometimes depression. Vital functions occur during various stages of sleep, making you feel rested and energized or helping you learn and form memories. Sleep usually improves when an anxiety disorder is treated. Good sleep hygiene also helps. Here are some steps you can take:
Make sure you start a nighttime ritual early enough so you can switch off more and get into a relaxed state. Nighttime anxiety can be caused by focusing too much on stress before bed, as you’ve been focusing too much on the day and not on the night. If you’re fixated on your worries during the day and anticipating stressful activities for the next day, it becomes harder for your mind to relax.
Our body wants to prepare us to fight or flee for example: work stress, relationship problems and social contacts can be seen as dangerous.
Create peace of mind and tranquility in your bedroom. Controlling the light, sound, and temperature in your bedroom can increase your chances of calming your mind and falling asleep easily. A sleep-friendly environment should be quiet, dark, and cool, between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit, to be precise.
If light keeps you awake, using a dimmable light bulb can be a great way to get yourself in the mood for sleep. And while white noise might be your favorite background sound for falling asleep, research has shown that pink noise also makes it easier to focus on your sleep.
Some people feel anxious, worried, and sad at night. Stress can cause your body to experience a surge of adrenaline, which worsens your anxiety and prevents you from relaxing before bed.
Practicing meditation can help calm anxiety before bed.
Furthermore, research has shown that relaxation techniques involving diaphragmatic breathing can lead to a significant reduction in sleep anxiety.
Read this blog to learn more about breathing exercises
Start by just sitting quietly for a few minutes and focusing on your breathing. Learning to quiet your mind and meditate can help you manage stress during the day and before bed. If you struggle with meditation, try these relaxing yoga poses to prepare your body for sleep.
Nighttime anxiety can be caused by focusing too much on stress before bed. Knott says this is because
“our body can perceive work stress, relationship problems and social contacts as dangerous, and can prepare us to fight or flee.”
If you’re fixated on your worries during the day and anticipating stressful activities for the next day, it makes it harder for your mind to relax.
Instead of letting thoughts and to-dos swirl around in your mind, write them down so your brain has a plan for the next day. Wells says that writing down your anxious feelings, especially through stream-of-consciousness journaling (writing down whatever comes to mind), can help alleviate your anxiety before bed.
Besides calming bedtime anxiety, research shows that journaling can also help you fall asleep faster. To get started with journaling, simply curl up with your notebook and a few cozy pillows and let your thoughts wander.
If you’re struggling with anxiety, other physical and mental health issues often accompany it. If nothing changes, this becomes an endless cycle. Sleep anxiety can have a significant impact, so be sure to apply the tips. Consiouz will soon be presenting the Sleep Academy for all ages. Are you curious?
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